The Lost Team of Fairy Tail
by thatangelwolf
Summary: { Disclaimer: This fanfic takes place in an alternate universe from cannon, one where my OCs exist. This is their story, explained as well as I could. }
1. Chapter 1, A Story Begins

_**Magnolia, Thousand Island Restaurant, Year X781, August 12**_

The 15-year-old walked into the restaurant and set the long case she carried down on a table and slid into the booth, digging into her bag, to find her cash in case she did buy something to eat. Sora was just passing through after all, so a bite to eat wouldn't hurt too much. A waitress walked over to her table while her head was turned, wiping her hands on her apron.

"So, what'll it be today, Gray? The usual?"

Sora turned to look at the woman, "Huh?"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" The waitress blushed, embarrassed, "You just look like one of the boys from the local magic guild is all, my mistake! Can I get you something to eat, honey?"

"Uh, do you guys serve dango here?" The teen asked. When the waitress nodded in response Sora smiled smalley, "A cup of chamomile tea and an order of dango then."

"Coming right up." The waitress nodded and walked off.

_Gray,_ Sora thought to herself, _That's what she said, right? She said I looked like him, so it has to be. But what would he be doing at a magic guild?_

The waitress came back and set a plate with three sticks of dango on it down in front of Sora and set the cup of tea next to that. "There you go, honey. Can I get you anything else?"

"Yeah, actually. That magic guild you mentioned," she picked up the first stick of dango, "What's it called?"

_**Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall**_

"Hey! Is Gray back yet?!" Natsu shouted, slamming his fist into the table.

"He's still out on a mission," Erza told him, "Be patient."

"I don't want to be patient, I want to fight him!"

The doors to the guild hall opened at that moment and someone walked in followed by a dog and carrying a long box on their back.

"Its about time you got back!" Natsu shouted as they walked in, "I've been waiting to fight you since you left on that lame mission!"

"What?"

"You heard me! So bring it on!" The Fire Dragon Slayer charged, fist raised, only to have his gut be hit by the short end of the long box, which then swung up and hit him in the face, knocking him onto his back.

"You've got me mistaken for someone else." The stranger told him, swinging the box so that it rested against their back again and then stepping on his chest, "Gray Fullbuster, right? That's who you thought I was?"

"Yeah, what's it to you?!" Natsu shouted, able to tell that this wasn't Gray now. It was a girl, but she looked creepily like him. "Who are you anyways?!"

"And how do you know Gray?" Erza asked walking over, but not bothering to help Natsu off the ground. She didn't like this girl and it was clear the girl didn't like her either.

"None of your business, Strawberry." The girl snapped, but her voice was quieter now, since she'd realized the whole guild was watching now.

"Hey!" Natsu shouted, getting her attention again, "Will you get off me?!"

"Oh, right." She stepped off his chest, "Uh, sorry? Look, is Gray here or not?"

"I am now." A voice called from the door of the guild, "Who's aski-" Gray stopped short of what he was saying when the girl turned around. The two of them stared at each other for a moment, looking like they both were seeing a ghost. "S-Sora?"

"Yeah." She smiled and her shoulders dropped a little bit, "Sorry, I didn't know you were alive until a few minutes ago, I would've come looking for you if I'd kno-"

Sora stopped what she was saying when Gray had run up and hugged her, tears running down his face. "Its good to see you again."

She hesitated a moment before hugging him back, getting teary eyed, "Yeah, you too."

"Hey, is someone gonna explain who this chick is?!" Natsu snapped, sitting on the floor and looking rather confused.

Gray pushed away from Sora and rubbed his eyes, "My sister, Sora."

"You have a sister?" Erza asked, saying out loud what was written all over Natsu's face, only much calmer.

"Twin sister." Sora corrected, "Which is probably why everyone keeps confusing me for him." She glanced over her brother and gave him a confused look, "Where are your clothes?"


	2. Chapter 2, A Question

_**Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall, Year X782, August 10**_

Sora sat with her knees drawn to her chest under a tree, watching her brother and Natsu fighting again. They had gotten a bit better at it, but they both still sucked at it. It would take Sora two seconds to have them both on the ground in a pile.

"Are those two fighting again?" Erza asked, walking up and sat down next to Sora.

"Let them. They need the practice." The younger girl scoffed, "Quite badly too."

"You know, you've been here for a whole year now and I still haven't seen you use any magic."

Sora got a pained look on her face, clutching the box next to her, "Don't expect to." The midnight black dog at her feet rested his head on her feet and wagged his tail a bit when she ran her hand down his head.

"You know I'm starting to doubt that you're even a wizard."

"Good for you, Strawberry."

"Why do you call me that?"

"You look like one. And you reek of strawberry cake."

"What's in the box? I've seen you carry it everywhere with you, but you never open it."

"Probably never will."

"Well? What's in it?"

"A sword."

"Is it cursed?"

"Nope."

"Can I have it, since you'll never use it?"

"Over my dead body, Strawberry."

Erza had gotten closer to figuring things out about Sora every time she'd questioned her. The box had been the biggest mystery about the girl since she'd joined Fairy Tail a year ago, but this was the first time the requip mage had questioned her on it. So it was a sword, and obviously very important to Sora.

"Is it yours?"

"Not originally, but it technically is now."

"Who did it belong to first?" The redhead sat down next to her.

"No one you know." Sora told her, suddenly more hostile than she'd been before. "Why do you constantly ask questions about me anyways? Its kinda annoying."

"That touched a nerve." Erza raised an eyebrow at her, "Bad memories?"

Sora didn't say anything, just looked over at Gray and Natsu still fighting. Her eyes narrowed at them, "You said you doubted that I was actually a wizard." She raised her hand, and two rocks floated in the palm of her hand in a circular motion, "I hope this erases that doubt." She snapped, and the two rocks that'd been floating in her hand flew forward, hitting Gray and Natsu in the side of their heads and knocking them over.

"Not bad," Erza stood back up, "But your aim is off."

"I haven't used my magic in over a year, so I'm a bit rusty. You're not allowed to judge how good my aim is anyways, Strawberry."

"If you say so, Dirt Brains." The redhead shrugged, walking off.

Sora picked up the box next to her and set it in her lap, tempted to open it, but she didn't. It was Keyra's. He said she could have it when he got a new one, but now he'd never get a new one. It wouldn't be right. It was still his. And it was her fault that he was-

Her thoughts were interrupted by her dog setting his head in her lap and looking up at her with his big brown eyes. She smoothed down his silky black fur with her hand and smiled at him. "I'm alright, Hyatate. I'm alright..."


	3. Chapter 3, The Beginnings of A Team

_**Magnolia, Year X783, July 7**_

Sora gave herself a small smile of satisfaction. S-Class, it was about damn time. It wasn't easy, but pulling that off was... Nice. Plus, she'd just bought a new apartment too, so things were starting to look up for her.

"Sora!"

The 17-year-old Earth Mage turned around in time to be hugged by a blonde woman with a braid running up behind her.

"Oh thank goodness you're alive! I was so worried! Where are we?! What happened?! I thought I saw you die after you cast that spell that sent me through an anim-"

"Whoah whoah whoah, wait." Sora cut her off, pushing her away to get a good look at her.

Short spiked blonde hair with a long braid, black, skin tight clothes that seriously showed off muscle, a black fur lined coat, and a lightning shaped scar on her right eye... She looked familiar, but...

"Who are you?"

"Come on, you're kidding right?! Sora, I'm your best friend! It's me, Laxus Dreyheart!"

_Laxus...?!_ Sora looked the girl up and down again. _Yeah, it was a close match but- _

"I know a Laxus Dreyar, not a Dreyheart." She narrowed her eyes, "Where are you from?"

"Uh... Edolas..."

_**Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall**_

Sora stormed into Fairy Tail, dragging this Laxus girl behind her. Makarov needed to know about this, and now. He should know what was happening, and if he doesn't, well this girl wasn't getting back home anytime soon.

"Oi! Sora!" Natsu cut in front of her on her way across the guild hall, "Where've you been? You promised me a fight!"

"I'm a little busy at the moment, give me a minute."

"Natsu...?" She heard the girl behind her mutter. It was still strange to call her Laxus, and to think that she knew Natsu...

"Hey! Who's your friend?" He asked, pushing her to the side to get a look at the blonde.

"Natsu, what's wrong with you?" She asked him, tilting her head, "It's me, La-"

Sora clamped a hand over Laxus' mouth with a nervous laugh, "She hit her head pretty hard, doesn't know what she's saying! This is uh..." Thew Earth Mage stuttered a moment, "Amina! Yes, this is Amina... My friend... Excuse us."

Sora pulled "Amina" passed Natsu with her, leaving the Dragon Slayer utterly confused behind her. "Don't talk to anyone." She hissed, looking behind her at the blonde, "They'll all think you're crazy, and I don't wanna clean up that mess!"

_**Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall**_

"Alright. Crisis averted." Sora sat down on the ground outside the guild hall as "Amina" stood next to her and gave a confused look.

"You call that 'Crisis averted'? Giving me a false identity in a world I don't know itsn't averting a cri- Okay it is a little bit, but I still don't know where I am!"

"I told you, Fiore."

"And I told you, I've never heard of it."

"And I've never heard of Edolas. Trust me, I have a pretty good sense of geography." She sighed, "Look, you acted like you knew everyone in there-"

"I do know them, but none of them were acting like they normally are."

"Exactly: How they normally act where you're from. Same people, different personalities."

A long confused stare and a mouthed 'What?' was the only response she got out of Amina. Sora sighed, trying to recall the book she'd read about alternate universes when she still traveled around. "You said you saw me die. When you found me this morning, right? I did. The Sora you knew died. You're from a world that isn't like this one, but it is." She rubbed her forehead, "And... Damn it what was it that I can't remember...? Magic! That's it! You need special items to use magic!"

Amina sat down in front of her, "How do you know that?"

"I used to read a lot. Found an old book in a ditch once, describing an alternate world. Edolas, you said? That's why I didn't realize at first that it was the same place. I'd been pronouncing it wrong." She bit her lip and pulled off one of her boots, turning it upside down and dumping a bracelet onto the ground, "This was with the book. I think it's from that world, but I don't know. I can't use it but-"

"The tree is full." Amina picked it up off the ground, examining the charm with an engraved tree on it, "I can use this! For magic! It stores magical energy for use, the person who fills it can't use it though... You filled it, didn't you?"

"All I did was put it on." Sora shrugged.

"Exactly. Normally, you would have someone put this on and then hold a lacrima, powering it up. But then that person wouldn't be able to use it. How did you fill it without a-"

"People here can do magic naturally. It ties into our live force."

"A bracelet of this caliber... It would usually drain at least three lacrima to fill... If it were to tap into magic that was tied to your life force-"

"I have more magic than I need, I guess." Sora cut her off, in a rather harsh tone even. "I have too much. I can't even control it all. Trust me, if that bracelet does what you says it does that I will happily resupply as much magic as that thing will need."

Amina stared at her for a moment, concern crossing her face. "I see..." She hesitantly put the bracelet on, "Well then. If I'm going to be stuck here, and if I'm going to need you to refill this bracelet every time I run out of magic... I think I'll need to tag along with you, won't I?"

"It won't be strange knowing that the Sora you knew is dead but I'm not?"

"A little. But I owe you my life. Well, I owe the Sora I knew, my life. You're gonna have to be the recipient in her place."

The two girls smiled grimily at each other and they both nodded and laughed a little. "So," Sora put her boot back on, "What was the other me like?"


	4. Chapter 4, A Young Addition

_**Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall, Year X783, August 4**_

Sora twirled an empty dango stick between her fingers as Amina talked about something she was reading. The two girls had just gotten back from a job an had decided to get a bite to eat at the Guild Hall before setting out again. The Earth Mage wasn't really paying attention to what her friend was saying, she was the argument going on off to the side of the Hall. Makarov was talking to a very frustrated and on the verge of tears little blonde girl. Maybe around nine years old? It was tough to tell. From what she _could_ tell, the little girl wanted to join the guild but Makarov wouldn't let her due to something, Sora wasn't good enough at lip reading to be able to tell for sure. It was when the little girl broke into a small coughing fit that she realized what was wrong. She was sick, permanently.

Sora could tell that this little blonde girl had probably spent most of her life in a hospital because of her illness, but she had potential... And that was enough for Sora. She stood up rather abruptly and walked over to the argument.

"Master Makarov, if I might interrupt."

"What is it, Sora?" He asked, turning to her. The little girl turned to her as well, bright blue eyes shinning with anxiety... and a pain that Sora knew all too well.

"This young girl, she wishes to join Fairy Tail, no?" A nod. "Then I will take her under my protection. She will join my team as part of the guild and I will look after her."

"Sora-"

"Master Makarov, with all due respect, I wouldn't have said anything if I thought this wasn't a good idea and that you were being a stubborn fool."

Makarov sighed, the Earth Mage could be even more frustrating that Natsu at times. He looked between the little girl and Sora a couple of times before sighing again, "Alright then. If you're going to take care of her, she can join the guild."

"Really?!" The young girl gasped, her smile showing over her whole face before she turned to Sora, suddenly getting nervous again. "Uh, th-thank you... But... I-I..."

Sora kneeled down to the girl's height, "Don't worry about it. The name's Sora, I'm gonna be you're big sister from now on, alright? What's your name?"

The little girl nodded, "I-It's Abby... M-My name is Abby Copperfield."


	5. Chapter 5, The Start of An End

_**Just outside Magnolia, Year X783, August 21**_

"Remind me why we're _walking_ back to the guild?" Amina snapped.

"Because we need more fresh air!" Abby called back to her.

"Cheap words coming from someone being carried on someone else's back."

Sora laughed a little, "Oh come on, she used that 'you-kicked-my-puppy' voice! Plus, she hurt her leg, what was I supposed to do?"

Amina opened her mouth to say something but Abby cut her off, "Onee-chan! Did you hear that?!"

The three girls stopped and listen for a moment. There was screaming, faint, but there. Sora set Abby down on the ground and began running towards it, "You two stay here!"

"Sora!" Amina shouted after her.

The Earth Mage didn't register that she'd heard her friend, nor did she have time to argue with them about the fact that they were following her. The screaming was getting louder as she got closer. It was male, full of pain, and there was a faint sound of... something. Sora stopped short of a small clearing in the forest. There was a man with red hair being electrocuted by some kind of magic, a magic being emitted from a key-shaped weapon held by a purple-haired woman. And behind that woman was another red-haired man. Sora didn't think, the amount of pain-

"Onee-chan!" Abby called from behind her as her hand grabbed hold of the stream of magic. Sora hadn't even realized she'd been moving. A small explosion later, and she was lying on the ground, ears ringing, head turned just enough to be able to see the purple haired woman grab the arm of the other man and run off. She stumbled to her feet and tried running after them, but fell onto one knee.

"Onee-chan!" Abby called again as Sora's hearing cleared up and she turned her head to look at her and Amina crouching next to the man who'd been attacked. "He's waking up, come here!"

The Earth Mage stood up and ran over, sliding into a kneel next to the man's head. "Hey! Are you alright?" She asked, as he squinted open his eyes.

"Ow..." He groaned, opening his eyes and staring at Sora for a moment, "A-Am I dead...?"

"No... At least I don't think so..." She blinked at him. "Who are you? Do you know who that was attacking you?"

"I... I don't..." He muttered, trying to sit up. Amina helped him up and nodded to Sora.

"I think he's suffered memory loss."

"Not... Fully... I can almost..." He muttered, "Nico. That's my name. Nico Maki."

"Well, that's a start." Sora smiled a little and put her hand on his shoulder, "Do you remember who was attacking you? The woman with purple hair? Or the man?"

"Purple hair... No... But..." Nico groaned, "My brother... Darius... That was the man."


	6. Chapter 6, But Is The Story Over?

_**Magnolia, Year X783, October 29**_

"You can't leave!" Natsu shouted, being dragged across the ground as he held onto Sora's arm. She just continued to walk, ignoring the Dragon Slayer completely. "You still owe me a fight!" He snapped again as she neared the place her team was waiting for her.

Sora didn't stop until she was standing with her team, where she then sighed heavily as Nico picked Natsu up by the back of his vest, dragging him off Sora's arm and holding him up in the air. "Oi, go bugger off back to the guild, lizard breath."

"Nico, put him down before he bites you again." Sora sighed and glared as Nico dropped Natsu on his face with a pout. She crouched down as Natsu propped himself up to growl at the taller male, "Natsu, I know I said I would fight you, but this is important. I'll fight you when we get back, I promise you. And you know when I promise something-"

"You never go back on that." He muttered, "...Promise you'll come back...?"

Sora was quiet a moment before she smiled a little, "Promise." The Earth Mage stood up, picked up her bags, and started out, her team following behind. Natsu laid there on the ground watching them leave, until they left his line of sight. He couldn't shake the feeling that it would be a long time before he saw them again, if he ever did.

It was less than a month later, that a messenger from the council came to Fairy Tail. She'd come to deliver a message. One none wanted to hear. Sora Fullbuster, Nico Maki, Abby Copperfield, and Amina Dreyheart were all missing... And presumed dead.


	7. Chapter 7, It's Been But A Year

_**Magnolia, Year X784, October 29**_

Today wasn't a good day for Natsu. Wasn't really a good day for anyone who remembered the way Fairy Tail had been eight years ago. Plus it was raining, which really only made it that much worse for the Dragon Slayer. Not because he didn't like the rain, but because Sora never had.

"Stupid rain... Stupid clouds... Stupid Earth Mage..." He muttered.

Something made him stop as he was walking though, and he glanced off to his side. There was a girl standing under a tree not far from him, with short dark hair that spiked out like Gray's did.

"Sora...?" He blinked before smiling and running over, "Sor-!" He stopped, realizing that she was gone. He knew this tree though. Sora would hide his scarf here when she got mad at him. Natsu's shoulders dropped and he began his walk through town again, until he saw Sora once more. He didn't think it was really her though, not this time. She was starring at a bouquet of flowers in the window of a shop he was nearing. Yellow ones, with splotches of red. The Earth Mage's favorite. He stopped inside and bought them, deciding today was as good a day as any, and changed his route when he got back outside. He wasn't headed to the guild now, Natsu was going to the place where one almost always was able to find Sora.

It was a little ways into the woods outside of town, but he knew what to look for so it wasn't hard to find. A small pond in the middle of a clearing with a rock that jutted up sharply on one side. If she wasn't on a job, at home, or at the guild hall, this is where Sora would be. Training. Probably harder than she should've been, like always. He sat down in front of the sharp rock, despite the mud, and laid down the flowers.

"It's been eight years, dirt-brains, and you still owe me a fight." He sighed, "...By now you owe me an explanation too." Natsu glared at the flowers in front of him, feeling hot tears mixing with the cool rain running down his face. She wasn't coming back, was she?


	8. Chapter 8, Awoken

Everything hurt. Limbs, air, the fuzzy darkness, it all hurt. Sora groaned. Damn it, that hurt too. Why did everything have to hurt?! Wait, there was a warbled noise. It seemed familiar... and there it was again, louder, clearer.

"Onee-chan..."

Abby?

"Onee-chan!"

Sora's eyes snapped open and she rolled over onto her face, hands covering her eyes. "Damn it! That was bright!"

"She's okay." Amina muttered with a sigh, "Can't say I'm surprised."

"That's because you're an asshole." Sora muttered into the ground.

"Got me there." She muttered back.

The Earth Mage sat up onto her elbows, glaring around. It was coming back to her now, most of it. The team, the castle, the traps, the demons- Yep, she knew why there were there. "Where's Nico...?"

"Sora!" As if on que the red haired mage ran over to them, standing behind Abby, "Oh thank goodness, you're alright! You are alright, right?"

She laughed and rolled back onto her back, smiling up at him, "I'm fine." That smile quickly vanished however, as another red-haired male appeared behind Nico, followed by a purple-haired woman. It didn't take long for her to manage to have Nico and Abby behind her, taking a defensive stance against the two of them, "You..." She growled, "I'll kick your asses!"

"Uh... Sora... It's okay..." Nico placed a hand on her shoulder, "They're-"

"Sane." The older red-head interrupted, holding out a hand to Sora, "Name's Darius Maki, this is Sara Greenfield. I owe you an apology, and my thanks for clearing that demon out of our heads."

The Earth Mage stared at them a moment before letting out a small, "Eh?"

Which was quickly followed up by a sigh from the rest of her team.

_**Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30**_


	9. Chapter 9, Too Much Too Soon

**_Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30_**

"You realize this is a lot to drop on a chick that just woke up?" Sora snapped, glaring at Darius as he stood across from her. "I mean, the last thing I remember you were trying to kill me. Now you're telling me I've been out for, what, eight years? And that you're suddenly my allies?!"

"Yeah, it's pretty hard to handle, huh?" He raised an eyebrow at her, "But you've seen the Copperfield girl. She's eight years older and could tell you everything that's happened that you missed."

The Earth Mage glanced over at Abby, who was 17 now. Sora was supposed to look after her, and she missed eight whole years. "Well. Forgive me for taking precautions." She muttered, "Considering the rest of us haven't changed because of this so called 'time curse'."

"We need to deal with Pan." Sara interjected, "We can fight later."

"The grape has a point, Cap." Amina nudged Sora in the arm, "We came here to take out a demon, so we should get it done."

"Don' call her a grape." Darius snapped at her, "She has a name. Use it."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Amina mocked, getting in his face, "Suddenly you actually care about her? Because when we were fighting you didn't seem to give a damn about her!"

"Get. Out. Of. My. Face." He glared at her, baring his teeth.

"Amina!" Abby tried pulling the older blonde back.

"Darius, don't!" Sara did likewise to the red-haired male.

Nico got in between them, helping shove them apart, "Let's just take care of this demon, please?! I think it's about damn time we did so anyways! So get along long enough for that, then you two can tear each other apart!"

"Fine." Amina and Darius snapped, still glaring at each other.

"Where do we find him?" Sora asked, turning everyone's attention to her, "I mean, we can't just wander around looking for him, we need a plan."

"I know where he is." Sara stated, letting go of Darius. Her statement caused the rest of them to look at her strangely, and she took a step back, "Well... I mean... I... I know where he usually is... But he might've changed habits in the last eight years... I don't know for sure..."

"It's a place to start." Sora shrugged, smiling lightly to the other woman, "Shall we?"

Sara nodded happily and began walking off. Sora and Darius followed side-by-side behind her, Abby and Nico behind them, and Amina bringing up the back. The Edolas Laxus didn't trust this at all. Sora was being too trusting right now, she always was. The blonde had to be ready to save her. They had been walking down a hall for about ten minutes before they came across a large open room, possibly once a dinning hall, where Sara stopped abruptly about a quarter of the way into the room.

"Doesn't look like he's here." Sora glanced around, walking forward a few steps after the others had stopped.

"He will be." Sara smirked, requiping two key blades into her hands before throwing them at Sora.

The Earth Mage barely had time to register what had just happened before she was pinned to the wall by the keyblades. They'd barely missed her shoulders, but had her stuck by the sleeves of her vest. "What the hell?!"

"Onee-chan!" Abby shouted, seemingly frozen on the spot.

"You all really thought I was on your side?" Sara laughed, "Oh that's cute."

"Sara!" Darius shouted, "What are you-"

The purple-haired mage punched him in the face, knocking him to the ground, "Oh shut up. Do you know how annoying you are?"

Amina ran at the other woman, fist raised and sparking with lightning, "You little bi-" Her shout was cut off by a blast of shadow that sent her flying backwards.

"Amina!" The younger blonde shouted, still unable to move. The light mage felt so... Helpless. She looked over to Nico. He was shaking, couldn't take his eyes off of Sora. There was something there Abby almost couldn't believe she was seeing. Nico was scared. He was never scared, at least not to this extent.

"Nii-san...?" She asked, following his gaze over to Sora. There was the shadowy outline of a man standing in front of her.

"Sora Fullbuster." The shadow raised it's hand to the side of her face, cutting the right side of her chin, "Your magic is important to my plans. Tartarus has made their move and it's time I retaliate."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Sora snapped, trying to move but finding it impossible. "What's going on?!"

"My Lord Pan," Sara addressed the shadow, "It's time, is it not?"

"Indeed." The shadow seemed to nod, fading into a mist that traveled into the cut on Sora's face.

The Earth Mage screamed in pain, causing Nico to lunge forward towards her. Sara requiped another keyblade, cutting him off by slamming him across the gut with it. He coughed up blood and collapsed to the ground in a heap, his shaking hand reaching out towards Sora. Sara stepped on his wrist with a smug look on her face, grinding it into the ground as he howled in pain.

"Sara." Sora snapped, but her voice had changed, "Let me down. I detest this paralysis magic."

"Of course, my Lord." She kicked Nico in the face, stabbing the keyblade she'd hit him with into the ground next to his head. Waving her hand, the two keyblades holding Sora against the wall disappeared and she stepped forward towards them.

"S... Sora..." Nico muttered, staring at her with a mixture of pain and concern crossing his face.

"D-Damn you both..." Darius stuttered, swaying as he stood up.

"Oh damn, he's still conscious..." Sara muttered, "I'll take him out."

"Sara." Sora, or Pan rather, got her attention, "The Earth Mage's will is stronger than I expected. Our plan proceeded too soon. I don't have the magic to hold her."

"I'll get you Darius," The purple-haired mage smirked, "That should be eno-" She stopped short and coughed up blood, looking down at the shadows stabbed through her gut.

"You said you would die for our cause," Pan removed the shadows from her as she fell forward, "And so you shall."

The keyblade in the ground next to Nico's head faded away as the life left Sara's eyes, her blood covering the ground. Darius let out a roar of anger and charged Pan, who swung Sora's arm and met his attack with a chunk of rock hitting him in the side of the face. It sent the red-head skidding across the ground a ways, where he fell limp into a pile.

"Pathetic." Pan rolled his eyes, or Sora's eyes rather. He looked around; Amina was passed out on the ground, as was Darius, Nico was still recovering from Sara's hit to the gut, Sara was dead and her magic was now Pan's. Abby was the only one still standing. He smirked at the Light Mage, "You're lucky Theodoros wants to be the one to kill you. Otherwise I'd have done it already."

Abby couldn't do anything. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. Couldn't do anything. She just watched as Sora disappeared into shadows. It wasn't Sora, but it was. There was just too much that happened, just too much. The blonde collapsed to the ground, losing all sense in her legs and blacking out as she hit the floor.


	10. Chapter 10, The Mind of A Demon

Everything was... fuzzy. Blank white space. Sora blinked once, then twice. But open space was all she could see. She groaned, getting to her feet. She'd been lying on her back, and her muscles were beginning to tense up so standing up was probably the best option right now.

"Finally awake, are you?" A male voice spoke and the Earth Mage turned to see a dark-haired man dressed in all black standing behind her, facing away. "It's about time."

"You..." Sora glared and rushed forward to land a blow on him, but she ran into an invisible wall and fell backwards onto her ass.

"Don't bother. You can't leave that area, I've marked it so you can't leave." He gestured to the ground at her feet without turning fully around. There were black lines forming a box around her, effectively blocking her in with some kind of magic. "You recognized me, didn't you?"

"With that voice?" She snapped, getting back up, "Pan. I should've known you'd pull something like this. Where are we? Where's my team?"

"I'm surprised you can't tell." He turned to face her, "Truly surprised."

Sora flinched back slightly. She hadn't been expecting him to look so... Human. All she'd seen of Pan so far was a shadowy outline, but now he was... Well, he could've been mistaken for normal here. He might've even been considered handsome by someone who didn't currently want to rip his head off. The Earth Mage felt like she knew where they were, but at the same time it was foreign to her.

"You don't do a lot of deep thinking, do you?" Pan raised an eyebrow at her, tilting his head slightly.

"This is..." She stuttered, the anger only growing and becoming more obvious on her features, "Get out of my head!"

"You're in no position to force me out, currently. I doubt it's even possible for you to do so now, so I suggest you just give up while you still can."

"You haven't meet many Fairy Tail mages, have you?" Sora smirked, resting a fist against the barrier in front of her, "We don't just give up. And I didn't come here alone, so you best be ready for an ass kicking."

"Oh?" Pan laughed, "Your companions aren't nearly as powerful as you are, and that's even when you aren't using the full extent of your magic. In fact: I intend to let you watch as I kill them all. Except little Abby of course, someone else already has dibs on her life. But I'm sure the feeling of dread you'll get as you watch her die, unable to help her, will be bad enough."

The Earth Mage slammed her fists against the barrier now, anger and despair filling her features as she shouted at him, "You bastard! Touch them and you die! I'll rip you to pieces! You'll never hurt anyone again, I swear it!"

The demon laughed again, turning from her once more, "Once I'm done with your companions I'll be eradicating the guilds of Fiore. Starting with Fairy Tail, I think. Doesn't that sound nice, Sora?"


	11. Chapter 11, It All Falls Apart

**_Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30_**

Something poked Abby's nose. It felt... Like a paw? She squinted her eyes open, the blurry shapes in front of her coming into focus. A black lab sniffed at her face, pawing lightly at her nose. The Light Mage smiled, setting her hand on his head, "Hey, Hayate... Where'd... You come from?"

"He showed up out of the blue a few minutes ago." Darius crouched down and held a hand out to her, which she took and he gently helped her to her feet. "Nico's still a bit out of it," he told her, motioning over to his younger brother who was sitting with his knees tucked to his chest and his face burried in his hands, "I think he's upset about Sora."

"Onee-chan..." Abby muttered, Hayate comforting her by rubbing his head on her leg, "What... What happened to her...?"

"Pan happened." Darius sighed, "He got in her head and practically took control of her. That isn't her anymore, I'd be surprised if she was still in there."

"She is." Nico stood up, "I know it, I refuse to believe she can't be saved."

"Nico..." Darius sighed.

"No! You don't get to start with that!" He stormed over to his older brother and lightly shoved him, "This is partially your fault as it is, so you're going to help fix it."

"Like hell I am." He shoved Nico back, "I'm just here to get back at Pan for killing Sara."

"She wasn't even on our side!"

"That doesn't mean she doesn't deserve to be avenged!"

"Hey!" Abby forced herself between them, which was actually rather difficult considering she wasn't very strong. "Both of you need to stop it!"

"Are you people done fighting?" Amina snapped, getting up from the ground where she'd be lying, "Geez, you make it really hard to get some rest."

"You're resting?!" Darius snapped at her, "At a time like this?!"

"What was I supposed to do? Run after Sora, or Pan, or whoever that was, while I was going to pass out again? Great idea." She shook her head, "We need to split up and search."

"For what?" Nico asked, crossing his arms over his chest, "Sora? The other demons Pan has around here? I know there's at least two more, right?"

"Padma and Theodoros, yes." Darius nodded, "But Sora should be our priority right now."

"Then Nico goes with me and you two can take the dog." Amina nodded to Abby and Darius, "That seems like a good plan, right?"

"I guess..." Abby muttered, curious as to why Amina would want her to go with Darius. Or why she wanted Nico to go with herself.

Nico turned and started walking off, "Well we're finding her and we're finding her now. I'm not going to wait and give Pan a better chance of getting the upper hand on us."

Amina nodded walking off after him, having to sprint a little to actually catch up. Darius tugged Abby's jacket sleeve lightly and began walking towards the hall opposite the one his brother had gone towards. The younger mage followed him, Hayate at her heels. What was to become of her friend? What had already happened to her? Could they even save Sora now? Abby swallowed hard, her heart rate speeding up a little as got thinking. Pan had two other demons with him, one named Theodoros. Why did that name sound so familiar? And why did Theodoros want to kill her so much that he would even specifically tell Pan?

"What's even happening anymore...?" Abby muttered under her breath. She was always asking more and more questions, even if she never got the answer. It made her feel useless, like all she could do was stand around and question everything. She might've been able to help Sora if she'd acted rather than freezing up like she had. Might've saved Sara too. But all she could do was stand and watch, and now her team- her family- was crumbling around her... Because she couldn't do anything useful.


	12. Chapter 12, Another Demon Comes To Play

_**Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30**_

Awkward silence. Nothing but the sound of two sets of boots and a set of paws treading along the ground. Abby sighed, this was just too depressing and... Boring. She had nothing to do. She'd memorized the layout of the whole castle weeks ago, and she'd been taking note of all of Darius's mannerisms. The Light Mage had nothing else to do after all, so the way his left leg limped slightly when he walked, the way he tilted his head to the right and slowed down his pace slightly every time they heard a noise, and the way he was constantly pushing his hair back so that is stayed slicked back- she'd noticed it all.

"Your hair would look better if you let it hang lose."

"What?" Darius stopped as they walked into a large room, turning to look at her.

"Your hair." Abby repeated, "You keep slicking it back. If you just let it hang lose, it'd be easier to take care of and it'd look better."

"What? Are you an expert on hair?"

"No. It... It was just a suggestion..." She sighed, "Sorry..."

"Aw crap..." He groaned, rubbing his forehead, "I didn' mean to snap at you, really I didn'."

"It's fin-"

"No, it's not fine." Darius cut her off, "I'm just not used to not being an asshole. And..."

"With someone that isn't Sara, right?" The blonde asked, offering a small smile, "I can tell you really cared about her, even if you didn't show it. But the best we can do is to find Pan."

"However, you won't be the ones finding Pan today." A man walked into the room from the opposite entrance, his brown hair messy and unkept and his eyes dark, hidden in shadow.

Darius protectively placed himself between Abby and the man, the red-head knew who that was and he wasn't going to let that thing get to Abby. The Light Mage, however, didn't know who it was at all. He seemed familiar. Like she knew him a long time ago, a really long time ago. Her blue eyes widened slightly as she put two and two together, realizing who this was.

"Theodoros..." Abby muttered.

The man leaned to the side, looking passed Darius at the young girl, "Copperfield. I'd know a Copperfield anywhere. You got away from me once, girl, it won't be happening again."

"You'll have to go through me if you want to hurt her!" Darius snapped, pushing Abby behind him, "Don' you dare come anywhere near her!"

Hayate crouched down, growling and baring his teeth at the demon in front of them. Theodoros looked between Darius and the dog, and waved his hand. A glyph appeared on the ground beneath them both and slammed them to the ground, as though gravity had suddenly becoming stronger. Abby tried stepping back, but another glyph appeared and sent her tumbling forward so that she was just a few feet away from the monster.

"Abby!" Darius shouted, the glyphs under him and Hayate disappearing. They both lunged forward, but they both became blocked off by an invisible barrier.

Abby got to her feet, her hands shaking. She was on her own for this fight, but she couldn't fight by herself. She was too weak, she needed someone there to help her. She'd get herself killed.

"And so the Copperfield line ends with you, and your sister." Theodoros held out his hand to her, "Your earrings, if you would?"

The blonde raised her hand to her ear, covering the silver metal protectively as she scowled at him, "Over my dead body!"

"Abby! Don'!" Darius shouted, banging against the barrier, "You can' win against him! No one can!"

None of them were aware, but Sora sat watching them from a whole in the roof of the room. Only it wasn't just Sora watching them. Pan smirked, the smug expression drawn onto Sora's features. The Earth Mage was desperately trying to break out of her own prison, just the same as Darius was trying to break into the one that held Abby and Theodoros in a fight.

"No!" The Earth Mage snapped, on the verge of tears, knowing no one but Pan could hear her inside her mind, "Don't hurt her! Not Abby! Not my little Abby!"


	13. Chapter 13, The Little Copper Bear

_**Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30**_

"Stay away from her!" Darius slammed his fists on the barrier, "Theodoros! If you touch one hair on her head, I'll-"

"Oh be quiet." Thedoros snapped, glowering at Abby, "Copperfield girl. Give me those earrings. Now."

"No." Abby swallowed the lump in her throat, breathing shakily, "They're mine, you can't have them."

"Give them to me, and I'll make your death quick." The demon snapped his fingers, becoming impatient with the girl.

The Light Mage hesitantly took them off and held them close to her chest, "Come get them." She said, breathlessly and barely keeping herself from collapsing again.

"Abby!" Darius shouted as Theodoros waved his hand at her, making a glyph appear in front of her. It exploded, sending her flying back into the barrier just in front of Darius. He slammed his shoulder into it, trying desperately to get through to help her. She stumbled to her feet, her ponytail having come undone when the back of her head hit the invisible wall. Abby had just barely managed to keep hold of her earrings. Everything that happened next was a bit blurry, and she couldn't hear because her ears were ringing so loudly.

"Open! Gate of the Little Bear!" The Light Mage shouted, throwing the earrings in the air, "Ursa Minor!"

Theodoros's face filled with dread, a pillar of light surrounding the young mage. Darius flinched back, covering his face with his arm so the light didn't blind him. The light disappeared, leaving Abby seemingly unchanged. Her eyes opened, their normal blue having been replaced with a dark golden brown. The demon took a step back as she stepped forward, her gait seeming different as well.

"You." She snapped, her voice deeper and older, "Oh, I've waited for this."

"How interesting." Theodoros smirked, suddenly more confident than he had been moments before. "Ursa Minor; the little bear, a celestial spirit, and partially human. I'm surprised you had to use your younger sister as a vessel. Too weak to enter this world in your own body?"

"You know the answer to that." Ursa rolled her eyes, "Don't try to distract me."

The demon smiled at her, a grin that was all teeth and terror. "I won't distract you much longer, my dear. It's time I end your life, and that of little Abby's, the way I ended your mother's."

Ursa's clenched her fists as they became enveloped in light shaped like bear's paws, "I'm going to enjoy ripping you to pieces, I think." The Celestial Spirit launched herself at him, and he blocked with another glyph.

Pan continued watching through Sora's eyes, grinning as each of Ursa's attacks became more and more useless. She was fighting with the anger she held for her dead parents, and each time it would end in her being beaten back harder and harder. Sora's breathing had become fast and uneven as she watched, unsure as to what was happening. All she knew was that she was seeing Abby being beaten and there was nothing the Earth Mage could do to help. She fell to her knees inside her blockaded area, pressing her forehead and hands against the barrier.

"I'm sure it's more than obvious to you how this will end." Pan scoffed at her, "How pathetic. For all Ursa strength, she can't do anything to help little Abby. They're both going to die, no matter what they do. However: we have more important business to attend to."

Pan dissolved Sora's body into the shadows, leaving Darius to be the only one watching the fight between the Copperfields and Theodoros.


	14. Chapter 14, Important Business

_**Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30**_

"Why'd you drag me with you?" Nico muttered, who was now following Amina since he had no idea where he was going. The blonde didn't respond, she just stopped walking where the hall they'd been following broke off into two.

"You go right. Just keep going until you get to a large room," She turned and started walking the other way, "If we're lucky, I'll meet up with you in time."

"In time for what? Amina!" He grabbed her wrist as she started walking off, "You haven't said a word since we set out! I know you're just as worried about Sora as I am, but yo-"

She yanked her wrist away from him, turning on her heels and glaring at him as though her eyes were trying to burn his too ash. "You think you're just as worried about her as I am?! There is no way you could be! You won't have to live with the amount of guilt I will if this plays out the way I feel like it will!" Amina slowed her breathing and calmed down, looking away from Nico, "I'm not worried about Sora. She's a strong woman. I'm worried about whats going to happen to her. She means a lot more to me than you realize."

"Hey..." He reached out for her shoulder, but figured it was a bad idea and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck instead, "I know you two are best friends, so we're gonna save her, alright?"

Amina scoffed in slight amusement, "I would ask if you're always so optimistic, but sadly you are." She started off down the left hall, "But you're going to hate me when this is all done."

Nico tilted his head at her as she walked away, not sure what she meant. Why would he ever hate her? They were good friends, he'd never- He shook his head. It was probably best not to over-think it. He started down the right hall, as she'd told him to, and kept going until he got to the large room she'd mentioned. It wasn't as large as he'd expected, it was bigger than Sora's apartment, sure, but maybe smaller than Fairy Tail's guild hall? Or was it about the same size? Nico stared at the ceiling a minute after he'd just walked in, but it came apparent to him he wasn't alone in the room anymore.

The ginger tilted his head down to see the room before him and the person within, but he flinched back slightly.

"Nico!" Sora smiled to him, looking breathlessly relieved and slightly disheveled. She ran up to him and hugged him, "I'm so glad it's you! I thought Padma would get to me first! I barely had enough energy to get Pan out of my head, I don't know what I'd have done if she came along too."

"Sora..." He muttered, hugging her back and burring his face in her hair, "You got him out of your head? Is he still alive?"

"No, he's gone. For good." She raised her hand to the side of his face and guided his head down to hers, "Actually, I'm really glad you showed up, of all people. I have something I want to tell you after all..."

Nico's face lightly turned red as she brought her lips towards his, but he pushed her back before they could actually kiss. His gaze turned cold and he held her at arm's length. "You're not Sora."

A devilish grin covered her face, "How heartbreaking. I was hoping you'd be stupid enough to fall for it. Guess you don't love Sora as much as you make it seem."

The tattoo on Nico's back grew hot against his skin as his glare turned to anger, "What have you done to Sora?!"

"You'll never see her again, I can tell you that. At the very least, not the her you once knew. She'll always be different from now on. She'll always be mi-"

Pan didn't get to finish his sentence. Nico blasted him in Sora's chest with a green lazer-like beam. It sent the demon sliding halfway across the room on Sora's heels.

"What the hell was that?! Isn't Sora your friend?!" Pan snapped at him, "Shouldn't you be shaking?! Unable to hurt her?!"

"Sora might hit me for it later," He shrugged, another blast forming on his fist, "But she'll be glad I'm not hesitating to kick your ass. Because you aren't Sora."

Sure, he was confident in what he was saying, but in his head he was screaming at himself. He could've at least kissed her before pushing away. No, Sora would've killed him for sure if he'd done that. Would've been worth it though. The Devil Slayer sighed, what was he thinking? He couldn't beat Sora, especially a demon abusing her magic. Abusing her body. Abusing her. He ground his teeth together. No one hurt Sora and got away with it in his book.

If Nico couldn't beat Pan, he'd at least kick his ass hard enough to give Sora a chance.


	15. Chapter 15, A Body Hits The Floor

_**Pan's Castle, Just outside Magnolia, Year X792, October 30**_

Ursa groaned, trying to get up from the ground but falling flat on her face. She didn't have any more energy left; she barely had enough magic to keep herself in the human world. "Abby..." The celestial spirit muttered under her breath, "It's up to you..." A flash of light and it was Abby again. She groaned, since her whole body was sore and her ears were still ringing, making it hard to hear anything.

"How pathetic." Theodoros sighed, "Ursa ran away, I suppose bears are cowards after all. Just like their mothers."

The Light Mage staggered up off the ground, but fell down onto one knee. She glared at the demon before her, anger filling every fiber of her body.  
>"You... You're the reason my parents are dead." Abby clenched her fist, light magic enveloping it as her breathing became shorter and faster, "You're the reason I'm useless!" The magic spread up her arm, making her whole appendage glow with a bright and pure light.<p>

"No! This magic! It can't be!" Theodoros stumbled back, "How could-"

He never got to finish his question before Abby blasted him straight through the chest and knocking him to the ground. The barrier keeping Darius and Hayate back faded away and Darius ran over in time to catch Abby before she fell on her face. "I'm okay..." She groaned as he helped her to her feet, "Everything hurts though."

"I'm not surprised, that was one hell of a fight... Sorry I couldn' help." He smiled grimly to her.

"Don't worry about it." She smiled back, and gasped lightly looking passed him, "Move!" She pushed him out of the way, taking the full force of a magical blast.

Darius quickly got up from the ground, "Abby!" He turned to see Theodoros getting up from the ground, a hole in his chest, and cracking his neck back into position.

"I was hoping to hit you both with that blast, a shame she noticed it was death magic and saved you." The demon scoffed, annoyed.

"Ow..." Abby groaned getting back up, "That really hurt..."

"What?" Theodoros and Darius stared at her in shock. That had been death magic, actual death magic. The really strong kind even, and yet Abby was... Perfectly fine. The bridge of her nose was cut deeply and blood was dripping down her face, but other than that she was all together unscathed.

"That shouldn't be possible!" Theodoros raised his hand readying another blast, "Maybe you'll finally die the second tim-"

Hayate jumped up, transforming half-way through and kicked Theodoros in the side of the head. "You really shouldn't repeat things that don't work." He pulled a pair of red glasses from his jacket pocket and put them on, "That's called 'insanity', you know."

"Who the hell...?!" Darius blinked at the blue-haired man, "I thought you were a dog!"

"We can discuss this later." Hayate cracked his knuckles, a rapier forming to his side from the earth at his feet. He grabbed hold of it and spun it around his fingers before pointing it at Theodoros, "Someone is in need of an ass kicking."

"It's alright." Abby used her teleportation magic to get across the room to them quickly. She stood in front of the kneeling Theodoros, glaring down at him. "I would ask you why you killed my parents, but it doesn't really matter to me. It'd just be giving you time to recover." Her arm glowed with the same magic as before, "I won't miss whats left of your heart this time." She blasted him through the chest again, the hole doubling in size and making the demon's whole body dissolve into dust.

The Light Mage stood there a moment before falling to her knees, crying. She covered her face with her hands as she began sobbing harder. She just killed someone. How could she have done that?! Sure, he was a demon and killed her parents and probably deserved to die, but Abby never thought she could kill someone. The fact that she just had, scared her. It made her panic, and that panic translated into tears. Neither Darius nor Hayate really knew what to do, they just sort of awkwardly glanced at each other before looking back to Abby.

"You okay...?" Hayate asked, kneeling behind her and resting a hand on her shoulder, "I could change back into a dog, if it would help any."

Abby took a deep breath and gave a small smile with a little laugh. "You were going to turn back anyways. Before Sora saw you at least."

He flinched back, having not expected her to figure it out so quickly. "Geez, you really are damn smart, huh? Are you... Are you gonna tell her...?"

"You can do that yourself." She set her hand on the one he'd placed on her shoulder, "But... Why did you...?"

"Teachers make mistakes." He shrugged.

"Yo." Darius snapped, getting their attention, "That Earth Mage you two are talkin' about? She's got a demon in her head controlling everything she's doing. So are we going to help her or what?"

"I suppose if I helped clear that demon out of her head, she might not punch me as hard." Hayate pushed his glasses back up, standing up and holding his hand out to Abby, helping her to her feet as well.

"We don't know where she is though..." Abby muttered. She tilted her head at the boys as they both stared at her with an odd look. "What...? Is there something on my face...?" She wipped at the blood on her face and a small dragon-like shadow jumped from her shoulder to her hand. "Oh, Umbra!"

The small shadow squeaked at her and grabbed hold of her jacket sleeve, trying and failing to pull her towards a hall off the side of the room. "Nii-san..." She muttered.

"Okay. What is that...?" Darius asked, pointing at the dragon.

"It's Umbra, an embodyment of Nii-san's magic." The young blonde explained, starting to hurry towards the hall the shadow had tried leading her to.

"Also known as Nico's call for help." Hayate nodded to Darius, quickly going after Abby with the ginger following him.

"You mean my brother's in trouble?!" Darius snapped, "It's probably Sora! He'll never be able to beat her! Pan 'll throw out all the stops, we have to hurry!"

Hayate nodded, picking Abby up off her feet and carrying her bridal-style, "Then we need to hurry." He hurried off after Umbra, who was flying as fast as his tiny wings could carry him. Darius nearly ran straight passed them but had to slow down several times, since he had no idea where they were actually going. He was just praying for his little brother to be alright. He'd saved his brother's ass from being captured by Zeref worshipers when they were younger, but he hadn't saved their sister. Nico was all he had left. He wasn't letting his family go down without a good fight.


End file.
